Be inspired by some of WA’s most accomplished leaders, and learn how you can own your leadership and create a lasting impression by attending the WA Women in Leadership Summit 2025 in Perth from 26-30 May. Photo: Supplied.
MasterCraft Series – Governance Essentials with the AICD
Date: 20 May
Time: 2:30 pm – 3:30 pm
Duration: One-hour face-to-screen session.
Location: Virtual
Email: https://apslearn.apsacademy.gov.au/user_login
In this event, the Australian Institute of Company Directors shares how governance enables authority to be exercised appropriately and for the people who exercise it to be held to account. Learn what its Corporate Governance Framework is and how it maps boardroom responsibilities, competencies and processes, along with its applicability to the APS.
Presenter Roslyn Jackson is a Fellow Chartered Accountant with more than 30 years of experience and a Fellow of the Australian Institute of Company Directors. Roslyn is a sought-after accounting and financial management consultant. She has held senior executive positions within the Australian Government and the private sector.
Roslyn’s expertise in public financial management has taken her to Africa to advise central governments of developing countries. A highly experienced trainer and facilitator, she has also presented throughout Asia and the Middle East.
This event is suitable for all staff.
Public Sector First Nations Leadership & Allyship Summit
Date: 20 – 21 May
Time: 9 am – 4:20 pm
Location: Canberra Rex Hotel & Online
Email: [email protected]
The Public Sector First Nations Leadership & Allyship Summit celebrates the transformative leadership of First Nations professionals in the public sector, showcasing their unique contributions and inspiring journeys.
It provides a platform for leaders and allies to explore the intersection of cultural identity and professional impact, fostering meaningful dialogue on partnerships, equity and progress. Through powerful stories, actionable insights and shared learnings, the conference aims to amplify First Nations voices, strengthen relationships across sectors, and empower participants to champion leadership that drives change and reflects the strength of First Nations communities.
Speakers include:
- Chief Operating Officer, National Indigenous Australians Agency, Rachael Jackson
- Chief of Joint Capabilities Group, Department of Defence, Lieutenant General Susan Coyle
- Assistant Commissioner for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander policy and reporting, Productivity Commission, Sarah Leary
- Director of National Parks, Parks Australia, Ricky Archer
- NSW Treaty Commissioner, NSW Government, Dr Todd Fernando
- Chief Executive Officer, Supply Nation, Kate Russell.
TAS Women in Leadership Workshop
Date: 20 – 21 May
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Grand Chancellor Hobart
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Enhance your effectiveness as a leader in an evolving professional landscape.
- Develop your individual leadership style
- Build confidence to lead authentically and effectively
- Learn the art of confident communication
- Enhance your ability to influence.
Trainer Michelle Swallow is a highly experienced director, facilitator, coach and change manager, and is currently director of Leadership and Change Consultants Pty Ltd. Michelle’s background is in leadership, governance, advocacy and policy across health, VET, housing and community, and capacity building in the community, government and private sectors.
She is influenced by a strong commitment to working with businesses and individuals to realise their potential and make a difference. Michelle has built her consulting career on her ability to work with a diverse group of people, concepts, communities and organisations.
APS 5-6 Women in Leadership Masterclass
Date: 20 – 21 May
Time: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Hyatt Hotel Canberra
Email: [email protected]
Build your confidence to lead by uncovering how your unique strengths and skills translate into the APS context. Stretch yourself, grow your confidence and lean into leading to make a difference in the APS.
At this two-day masterclass, you will develop the skills and behaviours that become the foundations of your APS leadership career and prepare you for making the most of future development opportunities.
Hosted by seasoned Commonwealth public service leadership coach and facilitator Kylie Holyland, this engaging masterclass is designed to guide you through what is expected of leaders at the APS 5-6 level, how to navigate the ins and outs of the APS workplace, and to develop the mindset to confidently back yourself in future leadership roles.
The content is designed for women in APS 5-6 roles to build the capabilities and behaviours that the public sector requires of you. You’ll apply key tools to carve your own leadership identity, cultivate a network of peers at the same stage as you and set yourself up for success for the rest of your career. You will walk away refreshed, inspired and more confident in your leadership and the path ahead.
EL2 – SES Leadership, Capability & Professional Excellence Masterclass
Date: 21 – 22 May
Time: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Hyatt Hotel Canberra
Email: [email protected]
This is an unmissable opportunity to gain skills, strategies and advice from one of the most accomplished APS leaders. Learn how to lead at the top of your game, with tips from the top of the public sector.
The highest ranks of the public sector demand more from your leadership. You have more responsibility, more difficult and complex problems to solve, and you will need to have a keen sense of the distinctions between your own ideas and the demands of the role.
No-one understands these demands, and the skills needed to meet them, better than Rebecca Skinner. Having led at the highest levels of the APS, including the extra-large agency Services Australia during its most challenging times, she knows exactly what it takes from you, your mindset and your skillset to steer the public sector in the right direction.
With an emphasis on capability, accountability and integrity, and a valuable blend of ideas, advice and practical tips, this is a learning and development opportunity that cannot be missed. Join Rebecca for two full days of learning and interactive activities to gain the perspective you need to lead at the very top.
WA Women in Leadership Summit 2025
Date: 26 – 30 May
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Parmelia Hilton Perth
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Own your leadership and create a lasting impression.
- Hear from some of WA’s most accomplished leaders and be inspired by their journeys
- Expand your network by connecting with remarkable women who empower and uplift
- Stay on top of the latest leadership trends and become a future-focused leader
- Re-energise your career ambitions and reignite your passion for progress.
Speakers include:
- Executive general manager, NextDigital, Mineral Resources, Kristy Doyle
- Head of Career Development & Resource Planning, Woodside Energy, Andrea Galt
- General manager, Infrastructure & Services, BHP, Emily Haley
- Deputy Commissioner, Strategy & Emergency Management, Department of Fire and Emergency Services WA, Melissa Pexton
- Pro vice-chancellor First Nations, Murdoch University, Chanelle Van Den Berg.
APS Contract Management Workshop
Date: 27 May
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Online
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Enhancing value for money through effective government procurement and contract management.
- Know your obligations under the Commonwealth Resource Management Framework
- Specify your business needs and establish the criteria required to meet them
- Negotiate from a position of strength – not just splitting the difference
- Enhance the value-for-money use of your limited budget allocation.
Trainer Kevin Riley has more than 30 years of experience in financial and performance management and budgeting. This includes working with Treasury and Finance departments in the Commonwealth and across all territory and state jurisdictions.
Kevin is a Fellow with both Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand and CPA Australia. In 2022, he was awarded the National Fellowship by the Institute of Public Administration Australia. He is also a qualified accountant with the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (UK).
Responding to the Complexities of Coercive Control in Family Violence
Date: 28 May
Time: 9:30 am – 4:30 pm
Location: The Sebel Brisbane
Email: [email protected]
This masterclass focuses on better identifying, assessing and supporting women experiencing coercive control. Coercive control is front of mind for people working in the domestic and family violence sector. In some states, recent legislative changes demand a shift in how we understand and address domestic and family violence (DFV).
While addressing coercive control has long been a key responsibility in the DFV sector, this change has added complexity to how practitioners work with clients. This masterclass offers a practice-focused, interactive and reflective approach to deepening practitioners’ understanding of coercive control and its impact.
Facilitator Grace Jennings is a social worker and trainer with Relationships Australia NSW. A social worker in the domestic and family violence sector, her practice experience has involved working with both victim-survivors and users of violence. Grace’s PhD research explored online and digital programs for users of violence, and the influence of extending typical programs beyond just in-person service delivery.
Grace has taught and lectured in social work at university and is currently the practice specialist for family safety at Relationships Australia NSW. Her research interests include gender-based violence, in particular exploring interventions with users of violence.
NSW First Nations Women in Leadership Workshop
Date: 28 – 29 May
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Cliftons Sydney
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Achieve personal, professional and community success as an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander leader.
- Understand and align your cultural and corporate responsibilities
- Infuse cultural values into your corporate role
- Enhance self-awareness and lead with resilience
- Handle setbacks constructively.
Trainer Jenny Turner is a proud Walbunja woman and co-founder of Indigenous Women in Business (IWiB), a 100 per cent Indigenous-owned business registered with Supply Nation. With more than 10 years of experience, Jenny empowers First Nations communities through strategic sales consulting and leadership development.
She has held senior roles at Glisk and PMP, specialising in business development and project management. Jenny’s leadership has also contributed to training more than 9000 people annually in agile project management and change management, making a significant impact in both the corporate and Indigenous business sectors.
Public Sector Mental Health & Resilience for Personal Wellbeing & Performance
Date: 29 May
Time: 9 am – 4:30 pm
Location: Online
Email: [email protected]
Overview
Psychological skills training for professionals and teams.
- Understand the psychology of change and how to respond to uncertainty
- Explore ongoing impacts on the workplace and in your personal life
- Understand the five key domains that influence your behaviour in social situations
- Establish a regular self-care routine, both at and outside of work.
Trainer Melissa Harries is a psychologist and specialist in developing proactive interventions to enhance employee wellbeing. She draws on more than a decade of experience working with the Australian Army, where she ran a military mental health unit supporting 1200 soldiers.
As the founder of the Parramatta Psychology Clinic, established in 2012, she provides EAP counselling with a focus on managing mental health in the workplace and fostering adaptability.
Master Cognitive Capacity & Prevent Burnout
Date: 29 May
Time: 9 am – 12:30 pm
Location: Online
Email: [email protected]
Learn how to use neuroscience strategies to work smarter, not harder. In today’s high-pressure work environment, traditional approaches to productivity often lead to burnout and diminished performance.
Cognitive energy is the foundation of high performance, and optimising it is the key to avoiding burnout. It’s not the hours that we work that lead to fatigue – it’s how we work those hours that’s important.
Overspending cognitive energy is unnecessary and will fast-track you to hindered performance. The good news is that with neuroscience, we can increase our cognitive energy so that issues like “zoom fatigue” can be a thing of the past.
This seminar introduces neuroscience-based strategies that shift how you work, think and achieve. It will discuss the neuroscience of cognitive energy with a focus on what it is, why it’s important and tips for optimising it to make high performance feel easier and free from burnout in any work environment.
It will also include practical strategies for high achievers. Attend and learn how small adjustments in your daily routine can create dramatic improvements in your cognitive performance. You’ll discover how to optimise your mental energy, enhance focus, and make better decisions by working harmoniously with your brain’s natural capabilities.
Facilitator Vanessa Bennett is the CEO of Next Evolution Performance – a global high-performance coaching business using neuroscience to help drive leaders and teams to optimise profitability, productivity and energy and to decrease their effort, sickness, burnout and mental health problems. This ensures that success, and therefore profitability, is sustainable.
